Interview with Caitlin Jemma, international touring singer-songwriter from Virginia City

Caitlin Jemma is a musician born and raised in Virginia City. She has been touring the globe for several years now, spreading her message of love and music.

Jemma recently completed a European tour, and now she's back in the Silver State. She was scheduled to perform at Piper's Opera House tonight for the West Coast Songwriter's Showcase in Virginia City, until Mother Nature stepped in.

The show has been postponed until May. Until then, you can find her music on her website, or on facebook.

You can also see her perform in Reno on Feb. 8 at Pignic Pub and Patio before she heads off on the rest of her U.S. tour.

We sat down for a chat about growing up in Virginia City, becoming a touring musician, the blues, and more.

KP: How did growing up in Virginia City affect your music?

CJ: When I was growing up in VC, it made me really appreciate nature, because my parents have an acre property in the highlands. I guess at the time when I was living there, I was a teenager, so I didn’t fully appreciate it until I left. Just remembering the desert when I lived in Humboldt County and remembering how peaceful it can be in the summer with all the stars and the coyotes singing and the wild horses, and I think that matched with the flavor of the town, kind of gave me an appreciation for saloon culture and music and wild women. I got really into studying female outlaws, and so I have a few songs based on cowgirls and female outlaws. So I think that environment definitely influenced me.

KP: What are the biggest influences for you as a musician?

CJ: I love bluegrass and I love soul music. One of my biggest influences right now is Charles Bradley; he’s an older soul dude who was just discovered a few years ago. I really love his message because he comes from a place of poverty and hardship, but he was discovered when he was around 65. He writes these amazing songs about coming from a place of struggle and overcoming that. A lot of his songs are about loving and taking care of each other, so I love him a lot. I really like Valerie June right now, she’s a cool artist because she has some bluegrass songs on her record and then she has some souls songs, and so for a long time I was listening to country and blue grass and folk, and I still love those genres, but I’m seeking to blend soul, Motown, some of classic soul through my voice and blending them with acoustic instruments and brass.

KP: Your music is a blend of folk, blue grass, even Appalachian roots; it's not a main stream music genre, but you've performed all over the country as well as internationally. What do you think it is about your music that is able to relate to a diverse group of people?

CJ: That’s a good question. For a long time, I was just writing about myself and my own hardships, and coming into self aware break up songs, and now I want to create a bridge between myself and the audience in the sense that I want to be writing about being loving and kind. I don't really write “activist” songs, but to me, writing songs about love and taking care of each other is a form of activism. I guess that’s how I’m trying right now to reach out to people, especially within this difficult political atmosphere. I really love to write about, especially through reading different zen texts, self-realization; I’m fascinated by it. I want to write more about it, and inspire people to look into themselves and become better people.

KP: What is the most difficult part about being a touring musician?

CJ: Right now, it’s hard for me, because sometimes I feel ungrounded. I’m in a different place each night and so it’s hard to feel rested. Other than that, I love it. I could keep going as long as my body will let me. What’s really hard is just being able to take that time for you, because you’re just going constantly. I’m learning all the time on how to do that.

KP: What do you think is the best part about being a touring musician?

CJ: I love meeting new people, that’s the best part. Seeing new places, there’s a huge mystery in this type of lifestyle; you never know what you’re going to get, and that is very fascinating to me.

KP: Do you think there’s anything unique about our culture within Northern Nevada, and the Valley? What do you think that is?

CJ: There is something super unique about it, it’s hard to pin down. It’s cool to see, since I don’t live here anymore, coming back and seeing everyone doing new and exciting things, like this show tonight that Roska’s put on, and permaculture, and just creating new alternative ways venues are expressing art and music and a lot of my friends are creating new gardening projects that I don’t really remember being around when I was growing up here. At least in Northern Nevada, there seems to be a very cool art scene, and everyone cares about the environment, which is different, I think, than when I was growing up. It’s cool that everyone has so much Nevada pride, “Battle Born,” I mean people even get tattoos of it. It’s beautiful, it’s such a beautiful area with so much nature that it creates this really unique culture within these mountains. It’s almost a mountain people culture.

KP: What advice do you have for musicians who are nervous about putting themselves out there?

CJ: It’s never too late. There’s a lot you have to give up, but you gain so much more from it. The number one thing being a touring musician has taught me is to be present, which I think is the most valuable thing we have to learn in life. Being present, accepting where you’re at, and feeling grateful everyday. You can feel really torn down and worn out being on the road, or you can feel blessed because you’re expressing your art.

KP: So it’s all about perspective.

CJ: Yeah. I think for some people it’s really hard, they have responsibilities and families and jobs, but I would just say: try it. Keep an open mind. If you’ve always thought about going on tour, just do it. It’s fun, even if you don’t make money, it’s an experience. I’ve been part time up until this point, but this year I decided to play a hundred and fifty shows. My friends always told me while I was trying to get to the point I’m at now, always ask for what you think you’re worth, and never sell yourself short. Keep an open mind about where and how you’ll play; you should never think you’re too good to play somewhere. Because what’s really amazing about touring is that you can play a really awful dive bar, and you can meet your biggest fan there. That’s what I mean by it’s always a mystery, living this type of life, and I love it. If you show up and do your work and stay present, then only good things can come from that.

KP: What’s the most embarrassing moment you’ve had as a musician?

CJ: Oh, I’ve had a lot. I’ve farted on stage, and had my band members make really weird faces, but they were just stuck there. So I did that, and then at some point after, my fiddle player did that, and all I could think was YES, it’s not just me. So it was embarrassing, but also very funny. Because the band just hates it, but it’s also hilarious, because it’s just like, “You can’t go anywhere.”

KP: What’s the most heartwarming moment you’ve had as a musician?

CJ: There’s so many. I feel really good when people come to me at the end of the show and tell me things like, “You inspired me to quit my job that I hate.” I’ve been lucky to have that happen a few times, and it makes me so incredibly happy because that’s my goal as a musician, is to have people feel inspired and do what they love, and that’s one of my messages: it’s never too late to do what you’ve always felt passionate about, you’re not just a cog in a machine, you’re an awesome creative being and I want people to find that for themselves.